New Farm Resources

This resource list includes organizations, publications and websites to help plan, start and manage a new farm business. Only a few workshops and courses are included, so make sure to “Connect with your Community” (see below) to find out what’s happening locally!

Business Structure

Information on farm business structures. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” section above.

The Starting a Food or Farm Co-opbooklet from the Local Organic Food Co-Ops network,offers information to help you start your co-op, including helpful how-to’s, lists of regional resources, and specific information according to ownership structure and the co-op’s main activity.

Comprehensive Business Planning Resources

In this section organizations, publications and websites that provide comprehensive business planning information or support are listed.

Organizations Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food (OMAF) You will find an incredible amount of useful information on OMAFRA’s website, some of which is listed under the topics on this page. To explore the website on your own, we recommend entering through the following pages:

Agricultural Business ManagementAGPAL a web-based discovery tool to help producers and others in the agriculture and agri-business sector find the federal, provincial and territorial programs and services that specifically apply to them.

Farm Management Canada is a national organization that develops farm management resources. Their website has a wide range of publications, a farm budget database, an online conference webinar series, and a section specifically for new farmers.

Crop Planning for Organic Vegetable Growerswritten by Canadian Organic Growers (COG), this book provides a field-tested eleven step planning approach that includes setting realistic financial goals, figuring out how to meet them through your marketing outlets, developing and implementing a crop plan, and record keeping and analysis. The book is interspersed with real world examples of vegetable operations across the country and also contains a wealth of information in the form of vegetable reference charts. These can be modified for use in your own crop planning.

Farm Organizer provides a wide range of worksheets to help capture and organize all of the information required for running a farm business. Worksheets can also be used to create an up-to-date business plan.

Everdale – Everdale’s mission is to be a farm-based organization that provides hands-on, solution-based food and farming education to build and engage healthy local communities. To accomplish this we deliver a wide range of hands-on learning programs on food and farming to people of all ages and backgrounds.

Farms at Work – Farms at Work offers a place to meet, learn share, and explore for farmers in Durham, Kawartha Lakes, Peterborough, Northumberland, Halliburton and Hastings.

Just Food – Working towards vibrant, just and sustainable food and farming systems in the Ottawa region

Ontario Farmer is the most widely read farming magazines that is distributed across the province, and is a good way to keep in touch with what is happening in the farming world. Producer Associations There is likely a producer association for whatever enterprise you’re considering! They can help you find out more about their industry and may even provide you with connections to relevant training opportunities, events and lists of farmers and suppliers. Many are listed here: http://www.adaptcouncil.org/memberorg.php

Enterprise Selection

Information to help evaluate and choose products and services for your farm. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” and “Production Planning” sections.

Guide for Beginning Farmers in Nova ScotiaThis guide provides an overview of the steps needed to take to start a farm in Nova Scotia. It also lists the minimum requirements for each of the major farm commodities so that readers can assess their own potential to produce those commodities.

The Farm Planneris a course offered by Everdale Organic Farm and Environmental Learning Centre to help new farmer participants narrow their farm vision and evaluate what resources they have available to them.

In this section organizations, publications and websites that provide comprehensive business planning information or support are listed. We are connecting new farmers with reviews of farming equipment, information and resources field tested by more established, experienced, and successful ecological farmers. We are putting together useful knowledge from a variety of informed sources to save time, money, and provide a supportive community where farmers can find recommendations, share ideas, wisdom and insight. We are hoping to answer questions like there are many options out there, but what specific books do new farmers with limited time need to read to gain the most reliable knowledge or what piece of equipment will one get the most ‘bang for their limited buck’? Finally, where do new farmers purchase all this.

1000 Stories of Regenerative Agriculture The New Farm has set a goal of gathering together 1000 or more stories about organic, regenerative agriculture that illustrate holistic, values-based ways to farm satisfyingly and successfully. Stories are sorted by region.

Demystify your Banker A guide developed by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDBC) for entrepreneurs seeking a loan from their bank: what your loan proposal should contain, what your banker looks for, common bank terms, and tips to increase your chances of success.

Farm Credit Canada is Canada’s largest provider of loans and other financial services to farms and agribusiness, though they are accustomed to dealing with conventional farm businesses. They also have a new Young Farmer Loan.

Growing Forward Programs The Growing Forward Framework Agreement is the most recent federal-provincial cost-share agreement. The agreement makes funding available to farmers through a number of programs including the Environmental Farm Plan and (EFP) and Growing your Farm Profits (GYFP). The EFP program involves preparing an assessment of your farm through a workshop process, highlighting your farm’s environmental strengths, identifying areas of environmental concern, and setting action plans with time tables to improve environmental conditions. If eligible, the program can provide financial support for implementing certain projects such as upgrading a well, fencing off a stream and even buying certain kinds of equipment. The GYFP involves a similar process that assesses your farm business management practices and, if eligible, can provide cost-shared funding for training, professional advisors, and certain business development costs. The Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA) delivers both programs.

Types of Loans An introduction to three different types of loans: Small Business loans, Low/No Interest Loans and Government Guaranteed Loans.

Your Guide to Small Business Developed by the Ministry of Small Business and Consumer Services, this guide is an information resource to help identify the things one needs to do before, during and after launching a business. The guide includes comprehensive lists of resources, government programs and financing options.

Financial Planning

Canadian Association of Farm Advisors (CAFA) is a non-profit, self-regulating organization for Canadian farm advisors. Its mission is to continually improve the quality of advice being given to farm producers and their families. A farm advisor listing is available online. CAFA members include accountants, lawyers, financial planners, bankers, insurance brokers, family therapists and other professionals.

The CSA Benchmark Project: How Well Is My Operation REALLY Doing? Farm Credit East has aggregated and analyzed the data from a sample of their CSA borrowers, and has established some preliminary financial benchmarks and performance standards. The data will help CSA farmers identify where they can improve business practices to increase profitability.

Goal Setting

Guidance for establishing farm goals and strategies for decision-making. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” section above.

Holistic Management courses in Ontario A Whole-Farm Decision-Making Framework that has been steadily growing in popularity in the prairies as a way of helping farm families harmonize Environmental, Social and Financial goals and make progress towards them. Tony and Fran McQuail from Meeting Place Organic Farm are now offering Holistic Management courses in Ontario.

Human Resources

Resources to help you gather information about human resources for farm businesses and develop a human resources plan. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” section above.

Land

Information about land tenure, evaluating land resources and more. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” section above.

Accessing Land for Farming in Ontario is a practical guidebook designed to facilitate preliminary discussion between a farm seeker and a farmland owner. The guidebook helps both parties think through the many choices they have and questions they should address, in order to arrive at the best possible arrangement (available as a free PDF).

FarmLINK.netAt the heart of this website is a Matchmaker tool, which brings together new farmers who are looking for land and/or mentorship and farm owners who have land available and/or expertise to share. FarmLINK also has an on-line resource collection for land owners: http://www.farmlink.net/en/farm-owners/resources.html

Farm Property Class Tax Program This program allows eligible properties to be taxed at the Farm Property Class tax rate of 25% of the municipal residential tax rate. To be eligible for the program participants must be part of a farm business with $7,000, or more, gross farm income and have a valid Farm Business Registration (FBR) number. There is a Start-Up Exemption for those just starting and without an FBR number. Contact Agricorp to find out more about getting an FBR number.

Ontario Farmland Trust A non-government, non-profit, charitable organization that has been established to work with farmers, rural communities and other interested parties to promote the protection of farmland in the province of Ontario.

AgMaps – Agricultural Information Atlas from OMAFRA, A mapping tool that shows you the Canadian Land Inventory status, soil type and drainage of land in Ontario. By clicking on Map Layers – Live Data – Environment/Base Data and zooming in to a parcel of land, you can select “Identify Features”, click on the parcel in question and it will give you the data.

Marketing

Information to conduct market research and about the many ways you can sell farm products with an emphasis on marketing directly to customers. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” section above.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) This website contains information about economic forecasts and statistics, policies and acts, as well as information for producers on organic production, with industry and census information. Buy Local! Buy Fresh! Maps These maps locate farms that are selling locally, and are often organized by regional health authorities in many Ontario counties.

Farmers’ Market Ontario (FMO) offers support for starting up new farmers’ markets, as well as providing a list of existing Ontario farmers’ markets on their website.

Guelph Food Technology Centre offer a variety of services for businesses in the food and beverage industry including nutritional labelling. Local Food Organizations are involved in many ventures including training, farm tours, culinary maps, feast events, and farm markets.

Ontario CSA Farm Directory If you’re interested in running a CSA, this is a great website to connect with other CSA farms to see how they market and run their operation.

Organic Council of Ontario(OCO) is a non-profit association representing the organic sector in Ontario. On their website you’ll find lots of information pertaining to the organic sector – statistics, information on certification, and a Directory where you can search for a wide range of products and services.

Slow Food Canada An international organization dedicated to good food, heritage varieties and local farmers. Through their different Ontario Convivias they host events that bring together farmers, eaters, chefs and others! This is a great organization to learn about food trends, specialty breeds and varieties.

Small Farm RegulationsA comprehensive overview of the different federal, provincial and municipal regulations relevant to small and mid-scale farming in Ontario, including supply management.

Statistics Canada You can search for census information by region through the site’s Community Profiles. These can help you find all sorts of valuable market research information, from population numbers to education and income levels.

Managing Risk on Farms Open to the Public is written for all farm businesses that invite customers onto the farm for activities such as direct farm marketing, pick-your-own (PYO), group functions, food service, and sales of value-added or retail products.

MyPick is a verification program through Farmers’ Market Ontario (FMO) that provides a logo to farms that are “local” and that are selling products that were produced on their farm.

Other Start-Up Farms

Production Skills Training

Below are listed opportunities for developing your production skills, including internships, mentoring and trainings. Only a few provincially delivered workshops and courses are included, so make sure to “Connect with your Community” (see section above) to find out what’s happening locally!AgriTalent.ca is a great place to start! This database of training and learning programs in agriculture offered across Canada was developed for producers, farm managers and other workers in the agriculture sector, as well as those without any experience seeking learning opportunities.

Guelph Organic Conference This annual four-day conference features a full schedule of seminars on organic production, marketing, business management and training. And great place to network! Producer Associations There is likely a producer association for whatever enterprise you’re considering! They can help you find out more about their industry and may offer training opportunities. Many are listed here: Adapt CouncilStep Up Program offered by Farm Management Canada, this mentoring program provides on-farm paid work placements that match experienced farm managers with young people just starting their farming careers across Canada.

Sustainable Agriculture Co-op Program offered at Fleming College, this three-semester Sustainable Agriculture program is designed for new and beginner farmers seeking an intensive, applied learning experience in sustainable, ecological or natural farming methods.

Sustainable Farming Certificate offered by Everdale Organic Farm and Environmental Learning Centre, this is an on-farm introductory course and mentored training in the practice and theory of sustainable local agriculture. Curriculum includes seed to market farm experience, seminars, field trips, and project work.

Production Planning

Resources to help you gather production related information. Other relevant resources can also be found under the “Comprehensive Business Planning Resources” section above.Production Resources – OMAFA good starting point for production information in Ontario are OMAF’s Cropsand Livestock sections of their website where you’ll find relevant production information, budgets, resources and newsletters you can subscribe to.

Best Management Practices Series (OMAF) Practical books on a variety of topics (e.g. irrigation, soil management, manure management) to help farmers implement affordable approaches to conserving a farm’s soil and water resources without sacrificing productivity.

Canadian Organic Growers (COG) is a national organization with chapters across Canada. COG has published several great production handbooks (ex: Organic Livestock Handbook, Crop Rotation on Organic Farms, etc.), distributes a quarterly magazine The Canadian Organic Grower, and has a public lending library you can access over mail! Environmental Farm Plan

Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association delivers free Environmental Farm Plan Workshops across the province. At these workshops, you will learn about risks to your wells, manure management, your soil types and a host of other topics. They are open to any farm or farm business owner. If you have a Farm Business Registration Number, are a beginning farmer or have a farming tenant, you may also be eligible for funding to do projects such as upgrading a well, fencing off a stream and even buying certain kinds of equipment.

Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada (OACC) conducts organic farming research and provides knowledge transfer and extension services for organic farmers. They publish technical research bulletins and offer web based courses in organic agriculture.

OrganicPriceTracker.ca developed by the Canadian Organic Growers (COG) this website provides certified organic produce prices from all across Ontario. Search by crop and by region to find farmers’ markets and wholesale/bulk prices.

Penn State Agriculture Alternatives Series provides an incredible number of fact-sheets for different crop and livestock enterprises, with information on revenues and yields. Producer Associations There is likely a producer association for whatever enterprise you’re considering! They can help you find out more about their industry (e.g. regulations, benchmarking, market opportunities). Many are listed here: http://www.adaptcouncil.org/memberorg.php

Record Keeping for Organic Growers Developed by the Canadian Organic Growers (COG), this handbook takes you step by step through the process of setting up a field-to-table audit trail.

Small Farm Regulations a comprehensive overview of the different federal, provincial and municipal regulations relevant to small and mid-scale farming in Ontario, including supply management.

Stewardship Network of Ontario, to find your local Stewardship Council. You can contact them directly for information on local programs. On the website you will also find valuable information and technical assistance on a wide variety of topics including woodlot management, tree planting, pond construction, and invasive species. Also see the Landowner Resource Centre.